We are writing to express our regret about the injudicious and inaccurate May 22, 2005 article about Dr. Zahi Hawass, Secretary-General of the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities.

As archaeologists and epigraphers working at many sites throughout Egypt (in most cases for many years), we completely reject the assertion that Dr. Hawass has created an atmosphere of intimidation, so far as such foreign-sponsored work is concerned. Dr. Hawass and his colleagues in the SCA have been unfailingly and generously supportive and cooperative as regards our projects. In addition, Dr. Hawass and his colleagues have vigorously promoted the protection of archaeological sites and monuments throughout Egypt as the need for expanded land use has become necessary and acute.

From our perspective, Dr. Hawass is a most positive figure. A leading scholar in his own right, he is also an extremely able representative of the interests of the Egyptian government and people in the protection and study of their extraordinary cultural heritage. The regulations controlling the activities of foreign-sponsored archaeological and epigraphic projects are eminently reasonable and applied fairly and impartially. We are also happy to respond to the Egyptian government’s concern, eloquently represented by Dr. Hawass, that especially threatened sites and on-site conservation needs to be given special attention by our projects.

Overall, our experience of Dr. Hawass and his colleagues is extremely positive, and we appreciate the generosity of the Egyptian government and people in allowing us to participate in research into their glorious past.

Sincerely,

Matthew Adams
Research Scholar, Institute of Fine Arts, New York University
Associate Director, Early Dynastic Abydos Project

Janet Richards
Associate Professor of Egyptology, Department of Near Eastern Studies
Associate Curator for Dynastic Egypt, Kelsey Museum of Archaeology
University of Michigan

David P. Silverman
Eckley B. Coxe, Jr.
Professor of Egyptology and Chair Near Eastern Languages and
Civilizations, University of Pennsylvania
Curator-in-Charge, Egyptian Section, University of Pennsylvania Museum

The second comes from Hawass himself, and I found this quite interesting as well.

Quote:

"Many people who excavate in Egypt believe that the rules announced three years ago for foreign expeditions to Egypt are new rules, formulated for the first time. Actually, almost all of these are old rules that have been on the books for years, but have never been enforced. There are only two new rules: first, that there should be publications in Arabic of all excavation results; and second, that no new excavations can be started in Upper Egypt (although new concessions can be granted in the Delta). All of the other rules were formulated long ago.We are entering a new era in Egypt. It is time to make protecting and caring for the monuments a priority, a job that requires the cooperation of all Egyptologists and scholars, both native and foreign. All of us need to dedicate our time to this effort.
There are, however, people who complain about the rules. Newspapers publish untrue statistics, claiming, for example, that the SCA has stopped over 100 expeditions from working. This is completely untrue. It is true that we no longer let anyone who wants to work in Egypt do so, and have turned down applications from people who are unqualified, or whose projects do not meet our clearly published criteria.
Who complains about these new rules? One example is a group of amateurs from France who want to drill inside the Great Pyramid, doing damage to prove a theory that has no basis and no academic support. Since the rules permit scholars to work only with the support of a reputable institution, they brought in a French Egyptologist to act as a dummy member of the team, simply to give them the authority to apply. This Egyptologist is not an expert on pyramids, and the application was rejected by the Permanent Committee, with the advice of the top experts in the field of pyramid studies.
We need people to understand that we are not against anyone. Our goal is to preserve the monuments of Egypt and protect our cultural heritage. To achieve this goal, we need everyone to follow and respect our rules. No more amateurs, no more non-scientific work. But to those who work with us, and care about Egypt’s past, present, and future, we say thank you".

I found it interesting to see his rationale layed out like this. And have some of the new rules (all two of them ) made clear.